


Linked Universe Weeklys

by Endofwave



Category: LinkedUniverse - Fandom, The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, linked universe- fandom
Genre: Gen, and maybe some others who knows, any warnings will be in notes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-19
Updated: 2019-08-29
Packaged: 2019-11-24 07:20:53
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 13,908
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18162809
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Endofwave/pseuds/Endofwave
Summary: Collection of short oneshots/drabbles based on the weekly prompts from the Linked Universe discord





	1. Favorite Memory

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Week 1: Favorite Memory. 
> 
> This barely fits the prompt I just wanted an excuse for Four to bring up Ezlo because he's so ridiculous. Minish Cap is already a great game and the fact that your hat is also a bird and also a wizard makes it just phenomenal.

“Okay, fine, stop me when you think I’m lying.”

Four grins at Legend, whose face is tinged a faint rosy color that has everything to do with the tankard in his hand. Four is blessedly sober, definitely of his own volition and not because the innkeeper “doesn’t serve children,” but it’s been slowly paying off as his traveling companions get increasingly drunk around him. Joining him in sobriety are Wind, and Sky, and the only other of them making an attempt is Time, who has water now instead of ale. 

“Fine,” says Legend, tripping over the one syllable word. At his side, Wind giggles into his milk (of the non-alcoholic variety). Legend tosses a few rupees onto the table, expression smug. “It’s a bet. Good luck, I’ve seen  _ everything _ .” Seated across from him, Warriors just rolls his eyes, and Time makes a soft sound of amusement. Four doesn’t know what the bet  _ is _ , exactly, but he’s game.

“It was on my first adventure,” He begins, and he has most of the group’s attention right away. None of them talk very much about their own time as the Hero, and any story from one of their pasts is bound to make for an interesting conversation. “I was making my way through the cloud tops, on my way to the Palace of Winds.” 

He glances around; Twilight and Sky are nodding like they’re following, while the others look dubious already. 

“There was a treasure chest right across the way, and I figured it probably had the golden kinstone that I needed to fuse with the last cloud to open the way forward.” He touches the chain of kinstones hanging from his tunic as he says it, to remind them what he’s talking about. No one in any of the versions of Hyrule they’ve visited have any idea what he’s talking about when he asks to fuse kinstones with them. Somehow, the Minish keep finding a way to bring the things to him, so Four has an excess right now. 

“So I jumped-”   


Wind gasps theatrically. “But you don’t have a deku leaf or a sailcloth!”

Four laughs. “Not now, no. I used to, though. Anyway, as soon as I jumped I realized that I didn’t have the height to make it to the other side. There was nothing beneath us, so we glided right through the gap in the clouds. Ezlo had my ear off about it.”

“Who’s Ezlo?” Chirps Wind obligingly, when no one else does. Four mentally high fives him for helping out.

“My sailcloth,” He says, with a sidelong glance at Legend, who looks unimpressed. 

“So what, a talking sailcloth. We’ve all had weird…” Legend waves his hand vaguely, “-weird magical shit. He talks to his sword all the time.” Sky nods happily.

“Well, okay,” Four amends. “Ezlo wasn’t really a sailcloth. He was actually my hat.”

“Oh, come on,” mutters Warriors, shaking his head, as Hyrule laughs. Legend’s eyes dart between him and the rupees on the table, apparently weighing his odds of winning the bet if he calls a bluff on Four now.

“Sure,” he says slowly.

“I couldn’t let go, obviously, and we had to drift all the way back to the ground because Ezlo wouldn’t agree to fall a few hundred feet at a time to go faster. We were in the air so long that the sun started setting over Veil Falls.” Four smiles at the memory. “It was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen, even though my arms were killing me by then. Every lake in the kingdom reflected the colors, and I could see all the way to my grandpa’s house. It even made Mount Crenel look pretty. Ezlo wanted to try the clouds again, but we ended up drifting all the way back to Hyrule Town. I wanted to stay at an inn after all that.”

Wild is nodding enthusiastically in agreement, like he’s had the exact same experience. 

“Ezlo never let me jump off of anything without his permission ever again. He said ‘Link, if Hylians and Minish were meant to fly, the Goddesses would have given us wings!’ He said that almost every time he had to be a parachute for the rest of our adventure.” He pauses expectantly. 

“Hold up,” says Twilight after a short delay, a little louder than he maybe normally would have. “I thought Ezlo was your hat. Did you just say he was a Minish?”

They all know what a Minish looks like, because Four has shown Wind and Twi, and drawn a picture for the others. Watching them trying to reconcile that image with ‘hat’ and ‘sailcloth’ is a journey in and of itself. Time contemplates in silence before shaking his head slightly and shrugging. Wild gives up a moment later, though he doesn’t look as distressed about not getting it as Hyrule does. Legend’s eyes are narrowed so tightly that Four would almost think they were closed if not for the scrunched furrow of his brow.

Sky looks a little confused, like he’s wondering why Four is doing this to their poor drunk friends, but Wind, like Four, is just grinning at their expressions. Now  _ this _ is the kind of thing he doesn’t mind staying sober for. He gives them a full thirty seconds, then adds, like it’s an afterthought:

“Oh, he was also a bird.”

Legend’s red rupee hits him square on the forehead. 

It’s worth it for the look on his face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What the FUCK is a proper ending


	2. Aftermath

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the prompt "Aftermath." I cranked this out in like two hours so I apologize for mistakes and my liberal use of unedited commas. This was originally going to be funny in a dark humor sort of way but uhh... Warnings for temp. character death and suicide. Enjoy!

“It’s official,” muttered Warriors, digging in his bag. “Wild’s Hyrule has the worst Moblins.”

He found the roll of gauze he was looking for and tossed it to Legend, who caught it with a grunt of thanks and set about wrapping the shallow wound on his arm. He was inclined to agree; all Moblins were pretty much objectively terrible, but Wild’s were big and strong, and took a lot of hits before they would go down.

And they stank to Hylia, on top of that. 

Legend pulled the bandage tight with a slight wince, then rolled his sleeve back down. It would stop bleeding soon enough, and it wasn’t worth a potion. It didn’t hurt much to move, and it was his shield arm regardless. As long as he wasn’t stupid, it would be fine.

“Are you mad, it’s absolutely worth a potion,” Twilight was arguing, and Legend almost opened his mouth to protest before he realized he was talking to Wild. 

Wild was sitting on the ground with his broken shield across his lap, looking at it mournfully. He’d had it for almost a week, which was probably some kind of record for him. The reinforced wood was cracked straight down the middle; Legend had seen the Moblin shatter it a second before doing the same to Wild’s arm.

Said arm dangled uselessly at his side, a bloody mess that was probably dislocated on top of the obvious fractures. Wild’s face was pale and there was a visible sheen to his skin, but aside from that Legend almost believed him when he said, “It’s fine, it doesn’t hurt that much. We only have two potions left, save them in case something worse happens. We’ll be at the next stable by tomorrow evening.” 

Twilight glared at his limp and twisted arm. “And you’re planning on traveling there in this condition?”

“I can fight one handed,” snapped Wild. “It’s one day, I’ll be fine.”

It was pretty obviously not fine. “But Wild,” said Legend, channeling his inner Ravio and sighing dramatically. “How will you cook for us? We’ll starve.”

Wild whipped his head around to shoot him a furious look. Legend pressed the advantage. “I guess we can let Sky cook again.” Because  _ that _ had gone well. “You weren’t there for that, but you’d be better off-”

Wild stood abruptly, unable to stifle a sharp cry of pain, and Legend winced sympathetically. The other hero grit his teeth visibly and turned to walk out of camp.

Twilight sat up sharply and frowned. “Where are you going?”

“To fix my arm. I’ll be back in a bit.” 

“How?”

Wild was silent for a moment. “There are plants around here that might work. I’m not going to waste a potion,” he added, cutting off Twilight’s protest. “Final offer.”

Twilight looked like he was still prepared to argue, but Time shook his head very slightly and he subsided. “You aren’t going alone,” said Time. “No, absolutely not,” he said sharply, when Wild took a rebellious step toward the trees. “There may still be monsters around, and you’re injured. Twilight can go with you.”

“No,” said Wild, too quickly to escape notice. Now everyone was looking in his direction- Twilight with extreme concern. “I…” Wild faltered for a second, then regained his stride. “He’ll make me take a potion before I can find the right plants.” His eyes flicked around the camp for a second. “Legend can come. He’s good at plants.”

No, he wasn’t. Normally he’d have argued about having to get up, but something was weird. “Yeah, sure,” said Legend, pushing himself to his feet with a grunt. “Let’s go, it’ll be dark soon.”

Wild didn’t look at him as he led the way into the forest. Legend didn’t know much about plants at all, but he had a feeling that’s not what they were out here for. Wild was walking in a straight line, ignoring the flowers and bushes around them, and now he had an aching suspicion. 

“So,” he said, just to break the silence. “Mad at Twi, or do you really not think-”

“Here is fine,” said Wild loudly. They’d stopped in a small clearing, really just a patch of dirt surrounded by some bushes. He turned to look at Legend, expression unreadable. “Keep walking.”

“...No,” said Legend slowly. He hesitated, not exactly sure what to say. “You know this is what we buy potions  _ for _ , right?” 

Wild was tugging his tunic over his head. Legend hesitated, but didn’t move to stop him. “Really,” said Wild, voice muffled by the blue fabric. “Keep going, don’t wait for me, and come back in five minutes.” He folded the tunic and set it delicately on the ground, and started tying up his hair. 

“Wild-”

“It’s fine.”

It  _ really _ wasn’t. If Twilight were here he’d probably be wrestling his protege to the ground and forcing the potion down his throat. Time could probably stop him with a look, and the others would have dragged him back to camp the moment they’d realized what was happening. 

But Wild hadn’t brought one of the others. He’d brought Legend.

“I’m staying right here.”

Wild glared at him. “I don’t need your pity. Or your help,” he added, voice tight. “I know what I’m doing.”

“Yeah, fine,” said Legend, waving his hand and trying to ignore his rising horror at the situation. “Look, Time was right. We don’t know if this area is safe. Two minutes, right?” He took a deep breath. “I’ll watch your back while you’re down.”

Wild paused halfway through drawing his broadsword with his good arm and nodded shortly. He didn’t look surprised, which hurt a little, but he did look grateful, which… Well, that hurt a little too. “You can turn around if you want.”

“Alright,” said Legend evenly, not moving.

He watched as Wild sat down carefully, muttering something to himself- Legend thought he heard “...easier with both arms…” and stopped listening. Wild ran one finger down the sharp edge of his sword, then took a slow breath and pressed it to the back of his neck. 

It was over in a second. Wild counted to three under his breath and made one precise stroke. His body hit the ground before his sword did, and the brief clatter of steel was the only sound that rang out. No wonder they hadn’t gone very far, thought Legend dizzily. Wild hadn’t made a sound. The others would never have known. 

_ How many times had he done this before? _

Legend stood and watched Wild’s lifeless form for the full two minutes, unable to pull his gaze away. He filtered the alarm and anger and pity out of his thoughts until he could focus down on the morbid curiosity that kept him from running, instinctively, to Wild’s side. There was so little blood compared to what he was used to. One cut, death too fast to bleed out- he small pool of it wouldn’t even reach Wild’s hair, and it was all just so  _ calculated how many times had he- _

Did he sneak away to kill himself  _ every  _ time he got injured? How many times had he left on the pretense of going to search for ingredients and find a hidden spot instead, fixing himself like this instead of what he probably thought of as a waste of a potion? Legend didn’t consider himself particularly close to Wild- or any of the others for that matter- not in the way that Twilight and Time were, but his gut twisted at the thought of Wild dying alone in the dark woods on the regular. Of  _ any _ of them dying, at all.

At precisely the two minute mark, wisps of blue-green flame appeared from nothing around Wild’s form. His arm lifted slightly as the bones realigned and refused, unmarked skin neatly forming around it. The wound on his neck knitted back together as quickly as it had been opened.

“It is my pleasure,” said the Zora princess, and Legend was certain he wasn’t imagining the pain in her voice.

“Just take a potion next time,” snapped Legend when Wild rolled over and grabbed his tunic like he’d just awoken from a nap. There was a lot more he wanted to say, but he had a feeling it would be useless. Annoyed indifference it was. It was easier that way. For both of them.

“Don’t tell them,” said Wild immediately, panic in his voice, and yeah, he’d expected that too. He turned to Legend, eyes wide, clutching the blue fabric like a security blanket. “Time and Twilight would ki- they wouldn’t understand.”

Legend pursed his lips, then nodded. “I won’t tell,” he said shortly. “This sucked, and you’re taking a damn potion like the rest of us next time,” he added warningly, when Wild’s eyes lit up, “But I’ll keep the others off your back.” 

“...And I’ll come if you need me to.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The original conversation was something like "lol what if Wild used Mipha's Grace to heal every time he stubbed his toe and the others were like no??? stop???" and I'm pretty sure it got darker from there anyways, because we can't have nice things in this fandom.  
> My HC for Legend is that after Koholint, he has major difficulties letting himself care personally about people, despite being a huge altruist. It's not that he wants Wild to keep doing this, rather that he can see that he has Reasons and isn't about to betray him to Twi/Time, but isn't equipped to help him confront those Reasons either, so he just kinda... passively is there for him? Idk if any of this even makes sense, I'm rambling and still bad at endings xP


	3. Warriors Week

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy some unedited crackfic here it is

Wild was obviously bored, and Warriors aimed to capitalize on it.

The blue-clad hero had been sitting outside of Time and Malon’s house for the better part of an hour, fingers flicking restlessly at the Sheikah slate. The others were all busy enjoying the day off that Malon had insisted they take, but that had meant kicking Wild out of the kitchen, and, well. It appeared he had nothing else to be doing, and that was all the invitation Warriors needed. 

He meandered over to the house and stopped in front of Wild, looking down as if he’d just noticed his presence. “Hey,” he said mildly. 

A spark of mischievousness lit up Wild’s eyes as he looked up at him, quick on the uptake. “Hey, Warriors. Malon kicked me out.”

“Yeah, I saw.” He paused for what he hoped was an appropriate amount of time to not sound overeager. “I was about to go patrol the field, want to come along? I’m going stir crazy here, maybe there’s some excitement to be found. Could use the company.”

Wild bounced to his feet. “I’ll go ask Time if we can take some horses.”

“We’ll be better off without horses.” Wild’s grin widened.

They both knew how skittish horses could get around explosions.

\---

“Sooo… what do you think it is?”

Warriors surveyed the scene with a thoughtful frown. They hadn’t come very far into Time’s Hyrule Field before finding something that they could probably work with. The plant protruding from the ground in front of them was unlike any of the other wildlife around, and he got a feeling of foreboding when he looked at it. That almost always meant bad news, unless you were looking for monsters, in which case...

“It kind of looks like a fairy fountain,” continued Wild. “Before they opened up, I mean.”

A fairy fountain? Warriors turned to look at him in confusion. “What kind of fairy fountains have  _ you _ seen?” 

“I’ll try giving it rupees,” Wild decided, apparently ignoring him. “That usually works.”

Warriors couldn’t think of anything better to do, so he watched Wild march up to the strange plant, rupee pouch in hand. The plant twitched suddenly, like an invisible line had been crossed, and the leaves at its base started to rotate, faster and faster. With a shudder, it uprooted and heaved itself into the air. 

“Warriors?” Wild was nervously backtracking, keeping the plant in his line of sight. “Warriors, I don’t think it wants rupees.”

Yeah, probably not. One look at this thing told Warriors that he didn’t want to fight it without a plan. “Come on,” he said sharply, waiting until he saw Wild break into a run before doing the same. He didn’t know how fast this thing could move, but the best course of action was probably to put some distance between it and th-

Oh. It had already stopped. Panting, Warriors turned and watched the plant slowly lower itself back into its hole, dropping the last few feet with an audible thud. 

“Huh,” he said. It had only activated when Wild had gotten near, so… They were looking at some sort of territorial plant beast, then. Weird, but doable.

Wild gave him a sidelong glance. “...We’re trying again, right?”

They made sure to keep a respectable distance between themselves and the plant this time. Wild fired a few arrows at it, and they bounced harmlessly off of the hard outer layer. Warriors left him to walk a wide circle around it, throwing rocks every few feet to test for weak points- there didn’t seem to be any, at least not while it was like this. By the time he made it all the way around, Wild had laid out some supplies.    


“Here are some bomb arrows,” he said, handing Warriors a bundle of ten. “I’m going in.”

“Wha-”

“I’ll lure it out with bombs,” Wild explained, unhooking the Sheikah slate from his belt. “Then you shoot at it, and I’ll use Daruk’s protection so I don’t get blown up. It’ll be awesome.”

Warriors stared at him. Bombs  _ were _ usually a strong bet when ordinary weapons failed, but that was his plan?

...How had  _ he _ not thought of that?!

“Sounds good enough to me,” he said, readying his bow. Wild grinned at him and set off at a jog.

Wild lobbed the first bomb at the plant as soon as it started to move, and Warriors followed up with a blast to its leaves when they started rotating. It stayed low to the ground this time, seemingly trying to get a bead on Wild, who was weaving masterfully in and out of the explosions. Warriors launched volley after volley of bomb arrows at it, each one exploding off the spiky shell with a resounding boom- and doing no damage. 

Wild yelled something, his voice muffled by the explosions. 

“-RY AIM- OOTS-!”

“WHAT?”

Wild jumped out of the smoke for a second, hands cupped around his mouth. “THE ROOOOTS! TRY THAT!” 

“GOT IT!” Warriors nocked another arrow as Wild disappeared again, only visible by the slight orange glow of his barrier. 

“HANG ON, GONNA PILE UP SOME BOMBS.” Either Wild was yelling louder, or his magical shield was amplifying his voice somehow. The blue glow of bombs in the center of the smoke cloud got brighter. “I THINK IT’S TRYING TO EAT ME,” he shouted, sounding entirely unconcerned about it. “OKAY, FIRE!”

Warriors wasn’t  _ completely  _ sure where the roots were, obscured by smoke as the plant was, so he took a guess and he must have been right because everything exploded. 

Warriors’ hearing returned as an annoying ringing sound that slowly focused until he could hear distant shouts of alarm. He turned his head and oh, he was on the ground, when had that happened? Wild was splayed out on the grass nearby, singed and still smoking. Warriors almost panicked for a second when he realized that his friend wasn’t moving, but then Wild lifted one arm and gave him a shaky thumbs up. 

Where there once was a plant-sized hole was now a smoking crater, the surrounding field completely obliterated by the blast. The sound of heavy boots on the ground reached his ears, and Warriors tried and failed to sit up just as the others reached them. Oof, did his head hurt. He flopped back down on the grass with a defeated sigh.

We killed it,” Wild was explaining in a raspy voice to Twilight, who looked like he was regretting all of his life’s choices up to this moment. Legend gave Wild a disgusted look and threw a potion at his face. “Ow.”

“Serves you right.”

Time heaved a sigh, surveying the destruction. “And what happened here was…?”

“We did it…” croaked Wild, grabbing at Twilight’s waterskin until he handed it over, shaking his head.

Warriors smiled, staring up at the sky. “We won…” 

“You won against wh-”

“Fairy fountain,” supplied Wild. Time looked at him blankly. 

“The peahat?” He looked back at the smoking remains of the field. “...A sword works just fine, you know,” he said finally, such resignation in his voice that Warriors almost started laughing. 

He didn’t have the energy for that, though. He was actually pretty sure he was about to pass out. “But not… with as much… style,” he got out, and the last thing he heard before he lost consciousness was Time’s heavy sigh. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> From my outline:  
> Wild: Ill try giving it rupees.  
> Wild, 3 seconds later: WARRIORS I DONT THINK IT WANTS RUPEES  
> They run away until it settles back down then they go back like dumbasses  
> Wild: here are some bomb arrows i’m going in  
> Warriors: Wha-  
> Wild: I’ll lure it out with bombs and then use Daruk’s protection when you fire, it’ll be awesome  
> Warriors: I see nothing wrong with this plan  
> Both: Hell yeah  
> (inspired by the antics in this post: linkeduniverse.tumblr.com/post/171005535584/jojo56830-marimarimarine-botw-and-hw-link)


	4. Unlikely Friendship

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alternate title: Friends in High Places

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You'll know when to hit play!  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-dR4rYgHlw  
> Disclaimer: I wrote this in literally an hour so... yep! It's short and full of panicked run on sentences. Enjoy!

He’s carving a loftwing.

He doesn’t _mean_ to be carving a loftwing, but that’s what’s happening; the little chunk of wood in his hands taking shape of its own accord. Sky tries to move to set the carving aside, to get started on what he’s supposed to be making, but he can’t seem to pull his eyes away. With a sigh, he turns the little bird over in his hands, running his fingers over the wooden feathers. There’s not much to be done when the longing for home hits so hard. He’ll just let it be, and it will pass eventually.

A tap on his arm distracts him from his homesickness, and Sky looks up to see Wild staring down at the carving in his lap. His eyes flick up to Sky’s face.

“I’m going to go check in on a friend while we’re still in my Hyrule. Want to come with me? I think you would like him.”

Sky doesn’t really want to see any more of anyone else’s home right now. He doesn’t really want to sit here wallowing in self pity either, though- besides, it’s been a long while since he’s spent any quality time with Wild. He rises, only a little reluctantly. “Where are we going?”

Wild smiles. “It’s a surprise. What,” he protests, when Sky hesitates. “Don’t you trust me?”

With his life and with dinner, yes. Where impulsive travel decisions are concerned… “Of course,” lies Sky politely.

“Great! Let’s go.” Without preamble, Wild grabs Sky’s arm and pulls out the Sheikah Slate, fingers flying on its surface. The almost-familiar tingle of teleportation magic washes over them before Sky can reconsider. He squeezes his eyes shut against the bright blue glow. The grass under his feet solidifies into a hard dirt path, the warm afternoon air quickening into a chilly breeze that carries the distinct scent of horses.

“I know it’s not much,” Wild is saying, “but I thought it might help.”

Sky opens his eyes.

And he gasps, because it’s _home_.

It’s not, it’s not at all home. But the village is built vertically, stretching as high into the sky as a town on the land can. There are birds, huge birds, and for a second Sky’s heart leaps with joy before he realizes these must be the Rito that Wild has told them about. This must be where they live, in a place suited as well as it possibly could be for flight.

Wild must see it on his face, because he smiles and puts a hand on Sky’s shoulder, guiding him forward.

“Come on,” he says. “There’s a few people I’d like you to meet.”

\---

The Goddess is here, and she’s beautiful.

Wild rises and turns away after only a short moment, but Sky stays a few seconds longer, admiring the flowers lovingly woven around the statue’s head. The shrine is tucked away in a little alcove, a space just for her.

“Link? What are you doing in Rito-”  
  
“Teba!”

Sky looks up just in time to see Wild barreling towards a tall, scarred Rito with white plumage. The Rito- Teba- tenses as though to move out of the way, but Wild stops short before running into him.

Sky finds himself content to kneel by the Goddess statue a while longer while Wild and Teba, who must be the friend he was talking about, catch up. Sky can’t quite follow their conversation, something about the Divine Beast in the sky, he guesses, but after a while Wild beckons him over.

“This is my friend, Sky,” says Wild in a rush, looking excited. Sky goes to his side and gives a polite nod of greeting, which Teba returns. “I have a weird request, but it’s really important.”

And that’s how Sky finds himself flying for the first time in years.

He holds it together until he and Saki break the clouds, Teba with Wild alongside them. He surprises himself with the first joyous whoop, which turns into excited laughter, and his emotions blur together from there until he feels wetness on his face. He lets himself keep crying, grinning through the tears, and if Wild notices he doesn’t say anything.

“Saki,” calls Teba, voice raised over the wind. “Link wants to show his friend around Medoh. Heading that way now.”

It’s evening when they finally set down on Revali’s Landing, the sun casting brilliant shadows over the Hebra mountains.

“Thank you,” Sky says to the Rito couple. “So much. For your trouble. It means a lot to me, if there’s anything I can ever-”

“A friend of Link’s is a friend of ours,” says Saki warmly. “If you’re ever in need of a flight or warm meal, all you have to do is ask.”

Teba waves Wild off, promising one thing or another about maintenance of the Divine Beast. Sky marvels at the memory of setting foot on Medoh; with the solid presence of stone and grass beneath his feet, and the cold rush of wind in his hair, it was almost like being back on Skyloft. He wonders if the Sheikah knew, when they had made it. Had they somehow modeled the great bird after his home?

“He should be free by now,” Wild is saying, and Sky snaps back to the present. “Come on, I want you to meet a very special friend of mine.”

They climb the spiral structure of the town as night falls and the soft sound of restless crickets fills the air. A moment later, the bold tones of an accordion join them in harmony.

“This is Kass,” says Wild, stopping at the end of a landing. The music pauses, and a sturdy blue Rito turns and regards Sky with warm, gentle eyes. He’s wearing a scarf, and a satchel with sheet music haphazardly tucked inside. And on his head... “I met him on my journey. He knows about me. The Hero things, I mean, and the hundred years.”

The message is clear: _I trust him_.

“You’re wearing red feathers,” Sky blurts out before he can stop himself.

“Ah, you’ve noticed my accessory.” Kass tilts his head slightly, glancing up at the brooch. “Yes, I wear feathers of this color to honor the ancient legends of a hero of the far, far distant past.” His eyes flicker with curiosity, then take on a strange, knowing look. “I know a song about that hero. Please, allow me to play it for you.” He poises his feathers over the buttons, closes his eyes, and sings:

_The first hero, bound to the sky_

_Upon great crimson wings did he fly_

 

_On that bird he soared with his friend_

_The princess that he swore to defend_

 

_Led by the sword of darkness' bane_

_Our hero began his campaign_

 

_Journeyed below to secret lands_

_Crossing forests, fire, and sands…_

Sky doesn’t know how long they stand there in the cool mountain air, listening to the sacred melody weave stories of the Chosen Hero.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's no ending because I ran out of time for the prompt, but imagine them standing there until Kass bids them good night and they go back to wherever the others are and Sky isn't sad anymore :D


	5. Hope, Even in the Worst of Times

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hope, even in the worst of times.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: is angst  
> Me: okay but what if-
> 
> Bonus Challenges:   
> Fight scene ✓  
> Link I haven't written POV for yet ✓  
> Prompt title ✓  
> 3k words X (but 2.4 ain't bad)

Time braced himself against the crumbling remains of the fort he had taken shelter behind, and tried to take stock of the situation. It was easier said than done- if he so much as lifted his head out of cover, he risked leaving himself open to further attack.

Another projectile flew past, too far over their heads to have a hope of hitting one of them, but Time still ducked reflexively. Four barely needed to crouch to stay in cover, but Legend had opted to fully sit down in the snow. He was grimacing in pain, one arm wrapped around his chest and the other bracing himself against the icy ground. 

“Bruised, not broken,” he reported in response to Time’s worried look. “It can wait, we still need to worry about-”

_ “I’d rather die than betray them!”  _

Wild. Four winced at the declaration, scooping up another handful of snow to hold to his slowly blackening eye, and Time let out a slow breath. He could hear muffled scuffling on the other side of their cover. Wild, trying to escape the grasp of his captors. It wouldn’t work- they were outnumbered five to four. Five to three, now, and the other side had a valuable hostage. 

“That can be arranged,” retorted a deeper voice. Louder, it said, “His life, in exchange for your surrender. This can be painless, or we can take you down by force. One more foolish run like  _ that _ ,” here the voice grew scathing, “and you’ll do our job for us.”

“They won’t kill him,” muttered Four quietly. “That would go against their interests.” Legend nodded, eyes glittering with anger. 

“Or,” said the voice, almost casually, “if his death isn’t enough of a threat…” It started to whisper something, and Time chanced a look above the fort to read the last of the words on the man’s lips as he murmured something to a stricken Wild.

“They’re going to restrain him and make him watch… something,” he said quietly to the others, ducking back down before they could take advantage of his vulnerability. He swore under his breath. They all knew that Wild would never break under threat to himself, but to something or someone else… Well, Time hadn’t been imagining the horror on his face.

...It had all gone downhill so quickly.

\---

The snowball flew at him as though in slow motion, and Time ducked it easily. It hit Four in the side, and he yelped and jumped away from the source of the blow, his hand hovering above the hilt of his sword as he glared at the culprit.

Twilight sighed in obvious disappointment. “You’re too fast, old man.”

“Trying to start something, pup?”

“We’re in Snowpeak,” said Twilight, a glimmer of mischief in his eye. “Best snow in all of Hyrule. Of  _ any  _ Hyrule. Seems a shame to waste-”

A lump of snow caught him in the side of the head, and Four whooped. Wild lowered his arm, grinning.

“I have better snow than you!” He called to Twilight, already bending over to gather another handful. “The Hebra mountains can outshine these hills any day!”

“You wish,” retorted Twilight, mirroring the action.

“Dibs on Warriors!” Yelled Wind suddenly. 

“Dibs on Twilight,” said Warriors immediately after. “I don’t want to be on the receiving end of that throw.”

“Coward,” shot Legend, dashing over to Wild and Four.

  
Warriors winked. “It’s called strategy,” he said. 

“We don’t need strategy, we have Time!” 

“Well, there are more of us!”

Time blinked. In the time it had taken for him to realize what was happening, Hyrule and Sky had joined with Warriors. Wild, Four, and Legend had closed ranks around Time and were looking at him to do something. 

“No items or magic,” said Time, already looking around for the best vantage points. Twilight met his eyes from where he stood next to Warriors, chin raised victoriously. Time smiled faintly. If it was a fight he wanted, it was a fight he had.

“May the better Links win.”

Wild dropped to his knees instantly and started gathering snow into a pile. So much for strategic ground- Time knelt next to him to help with the wall. 

The other side, he noted grimly, seemed to be doing better already. “Sky and Hyrule on building, Wind on ammunition.” Warriors was commanding, as Time had feared. “Twilight, you and I will run interference.”

“Stop them,” Time ordered, glancing at Legend and Four, who had taken inspiration and were already stockpiling snowballs. “Legend and Wild, don’t let them reach our defenses until we’re ready.”

“Interfere with their interference,” agreed Wild, leaping to his feet.

_ “No magic items,” _ Time felt the need to reiterate, and soon enough snow was flying in the space between the two growing forts. Legend and Wild retreated behind the defenses when Wind joined Warriors and Twilight on the field, throwing with a shorter range but deadly precision. 

“They’re packing them really hard,” said Wild, shaking the snow out of his hair. “And Twilight throws like a Talus. It’s getting dangerous out there.”

“Too bad we’re outnumbered,” muttered Time, chancing a look into the field. It was empty save for Sky, standing near the opposing fort, apparently on watch. “There must be a way…”

Four eyed his sword. “Does it count as magic if I-”

“Yes.”

“Damn.”

Legend frowned. “So an all out assault, then? Either they come to us or we go to them. It’ll be hard to beat them from a distance.”

“We need to make a decision quickly,” Wild pointed out. “They have a few piles already, and it looks like Wind and Hyrule are making ice balls.” 

Time batted at the Sheikah slate, which Wild had raised to his eye. “It’s not magic! It’s technology!”

“Still cheating. We can win this fairly.”

The plan suffered for how quickly they had to make it, but in the end the rough diagram Time sketched in the snow satisfied all four heroes. He and Four would sneak around the flanks of Warriors’ team while Legend and Wild reprised their roles as diversion. They would draw the others out while Time and Four destroyed their supplies and, with luck, be able to use the remainder against them. Another quick look through the Sheikah scope- Time turned his blind eye to it- told them that all five of their opponents were hidden behind their fort. 

“Don’t forget to watch for Twilight,” warned Legend, adjusting his boots. “He can do some damage even without a power glove.”

“Of course. Fall back here if you run into trouble. Move out- good luck, boys,” said Time warmly, confident in their abilities. He laughed when Wild gave him a deep, flourishing bow, and waved the younger hero on his way. 

\---

_ “You’ll have to kill me before I let you-” _ The telltale sound of snow hitting cloth cut off Wild’s dramatic declaration, and he dissolved into a loud tirade of curses among the others’ laughter. 

“Language,” said Warriors and Twilight at the same time, and Wind’s laughing redoubled.

Time pursed his lips. He was certain- well, mostly- that Wild wasn’t in any real danger from the others, but things were, perhaps, getting slightly out of hand. “I think,” he said, a little bitterly, “it may be time to consider a surrender.” Wild’s angry yells covered Legend and Four’s shocked exclamations. 

When the field again grew quiet save for Warriors’ demands, Legend leaned in closer to hiss, “I am  _ not _ losing to him.”

“Sometimes it’s harder to leave a fight than it is to start it,” said Time. “I’m sure Warriors knows that, and he’s done his best to give us every incentive to surrender.”  _ ‘I’d rather die!’  _ echoed in his mind. It wasn’t something he wanted to hear any of them say, even in jest. Despite it all, he couldn’t hold back a soft huff of laughter. “I’m sure their terms will be fair, and that they treat their defeated foes kindly.”

“We can’t give up hope,” insisted Four. “Even in the worst of times. There must be a way.” Legend nodded aggressively. 

Time furrowed his brow. “First, we would have to get Wild away from them. Our odds don’t look good with these numbers, and we haven’t seen Sky or Hyrule in some time. Stockpiling, I would guess.”

“They have a valuable hostage,” said Four thoughtfully, “more ammunition, and a considerably better base. What do we have that they don’t?”

They pondered in silence for a moment. 

“Exactly,” Four continued. “I don’t think there’s a way for us to win this honorably.”

“So we play dirty,” said Legend with a terrifying grin.

“No holds barred. We’re amending ‘no magic items’ to ‘no lethal force,’” he continued when neither Time nor Four protested. “I can free Wild. Can one of you get to the- what are  _ those?” _

“Mole mitts,” said Four proudly, holding out two unwieldy looking clawed gloves. “Leave their ammunition to me.”

“I’ll take care of Twilight,” said Time, relenting. “Their defenses as well. Can you two hold the others off for that long?”

“As long as you need, old man,” said Legend confidently. 

It would take Four the longest to get into position, so he dug into the snow with his mitts and disappeared like a white wolfos as soon as the strategy was finalized. Legend pulled out his fire rod and refused to explain the choice to Time- before he could question it, the younger hero gave him a firm nod and leapt from cover.

“Cowards!” He cried, flames sweeping outward in an arc. 

_ Brilliant _ . Wind and Twilight darted backwards, shouting in alarm and annoyance. Warriors stumbled at the sudden lack of snow under his feet, but Wild didn’t flinch. A pillar of ice materialized from nothing under his feet, shooting up from the newly made snowmelt and ripping him out of Warriors’ grasp. He used the momentum to launch himself higher, twisting in midair to shoot an impossibly fast volley of fire arrows into the snow surrounding the opposing base. 

Hyrule and Sky backed further into the shelter of their fort as the piles of snowballs started to lose their shape in the sudden heat. They gave startled yells as Four erupted from the ground beneath them, sending them both crashing to the ground. Time watched him position the clawed mitts above their heads and say something, too far away to hear, and then grin at Hyrule, who was pointing angrily at the items.

Legend was engaged with Warriors, and Wild nowhere to be seen- the time was now. Time charged the fort, planning on simply slamming into it at full force. It was just snow, after all, with no real structure or power to be overcome. 

Some snow slammed into his armor from the side, and he no longer felt that way about snow. It hit him so hard that it actually threw him off balance, and Time only narrowly avoided falling. He whipped around just in time to parry the next ball of snow- ice, really- with his shield, and faced Twilight grimly.

“I have to admit, I didn’t think you would be such a sore loser,” challenged Twilight, moving to stand between Time and his fort. “But if you think you can win that easily-” He cut off with an undignified yelp as Time slammed into him at full force.

They tumbled backwards together and crashed into the fort, knocking most of it over and into Sky, Hyrule, and Four, who raised the mole mitts instinctively to cover his face. Sky and Hyrule took advantage of the distraction and scrambled away, right into Legend, who moved to chase them-

A pillar of ice burst out of the half melted snow between them.

Twilight kicked Time in the stomach, hard enough to give himself the momentum he needed to get to his feet, and fled the collapsed fort with a gleeful “Sorry, old man!” Time spun around in confusion as more ice grew from the ground where Wild’s fire arrows had melted the snow, separating himself, Legend, and Four from the others.

“I declare victory!” Warriors pulled himself up onto one of the blocks and nodded at someone below him. “Well done, Wild.”

“Wild?” Said Four in a small voice.

Legend pounded on the ice furiously. “After all we’ve been through? How could you!?” 

“We blackmailed him,” explained Warriors happily.

Wild appeared next to Warriors, looking downcast. “I made the ultimate sacrifice for the good of the group, united,” he said sadly. “You would have done the same.”

Time shook his head. “What could they possibly have threatened you with?”

“They have rations, we don’t. They were gonna tie me up and make me watch Hyrule cook dinner tonight if we didn’t surrender.” He bowed his head. “I’m sorry.”

“I surrender,” said Four instantly, pulling the mitts off his hands and raising them into the air. 

“I’m on their team now,” decided Legend. Warriors offered him a hand and helped him up onto the ice block. 

Time sighed. “Well fought, boys. Well won, Warriors, Wild.” He drew his spare broadsword and knelt formally. Wild dispersed the ice at the cessation of hostilities, and Warriors gleefully accepted Time’s surrender and blade.

“I declare victory and unification! Let us rejoice and feast in celebration!”

He led a cheer for the winners, Four glaring daggers at Legend the entire time. 

“So…” said Wild mildly, surveying their snow-soaked supplies. “We’re going back to the mansion?”

Legend groaned. “If we can make it that far. We have injured.”

“...I’ll run ahead and ask Yeto to make some extra hearty soup,” said Twilight hastily, and darted off into the snow like a wolfos himself before retribution could be had.

“You all fought well,” said Time, amused. “I’m glad we’re all on the same team.” 

“Well, mostly.”


	6. Sky Week

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Missed last week because of finals, but now that juries are over and I've passed my upper divisional I can write some more!  
> The bonuses I got this week were over 3k (yay!) and having loftwings in the fic. I did mention Hylia, because it's kind of impossible not to in the setting I used! I did run out of time to really proofread this, so apologies in advance for any grammar mistakes.  
> Enjoy!

They’ve come to know that being lost lost means that they’re headed somewhere new. 

It puts some of the older heroes on edge, but Wind is fine with it, really. It’s kind of exciting, exploring all of these new lands, and maybe they’ll be somewhere with a  _ real  _ body of water this time, not that little puddle Twilight called a lake. The transition between Hyrules is usually pretty smooth, so he’s put himself on lookout duty to figure out where they are.

He’s right up front with Sky and Hyrule, scanning the trees for clues of their new location, and he sees the statue a second before Sky does.

“Oh!” Gasps Sky, running forward as Wind opens his mouth to point it out. He reaches the statue, a tall stone bird untouched by the moss covering the surrounding trees, and beams at it. 

A bird? Oh! “That’s a loftwing!” realizes Wind, matching Sky’s description to the real thing. He looks up at Sky for confirmation.

“Yes! This is my Hyrule. But this statue, I haven’t seen-” Sky reaches out and touches the bird on the tip of the beak, and the base of the statue lights up at the contact. He gives a little laugh of delight and looks back down at Wind. 

“I’ll be right back.”

Wind scrambles backwards as a pillar of wind erupts around the statue. Sky opens his sailcloth and it snaps open above his head, whisking him away into the air. Someone shouts in surprise, but as quickly as the updraft sprung into existence, it’s gone, and so is Sky. Wind peers upwards through the trees, but what he can make out through the branches is hidden by a layer of thick clouds. 

“Where’d he go?” Asks Hyrule, neck craned backwards to stare at the sky. 

“Up,” says Wild unhelpfully, doing the same. 

Warriors rolls his eyes. “He’s coming back down,” he reports, pointing.

Wind steps back to make room and Sky lands next to him a moment later, still beaming. “Come on,” he says. “We’re going to the sky.”

Wild hops forward, and Wind reaches for his deku leaf, but no one else moves. “Um,” says Four, “Most of us can’t… do that.”

Sky waves a hand. “Don’t worry, a friend of mine is up there. I had a feeling he might be. He has an airshop, he can ferry us all from where we are to Skyloft.”

“Oh, like Beedle,” says Wind, thinking back on the New Hyrulian’s air balloon.

Wild glances at him. “You have a Beedle too?” 

“It’s Beedle,” confirms Sky- it’s happened so many times that it’s not a surprise anymore, to hear familiar names between them. “Everyone hold on to me, Wild, or Wind. The statue should be strong enough to carry us all up together.”

This Beedle’s airshop isn’t quite like the one that Wind remembers, and he has an uneasy feeling that it’s not really meant to carry more than one person, much less ten, but soon enough they’re all aboard and cruising through the sky. If not for the lack of water it would really be a lot like sailing, thinks Wind, squinting into the distance at a huge island that’s slowly getting closer. It seems weird, too, for the merchant to be out here so far away from “land.” 

“He’s not really supposed to be up here at all,” explains Sky, when he asks. “We’ve been living on the surface for a few years, but Beedle brings his airshop up sometimes to catch bugs that only live on Skyloft.”

“Why isn’t he supposed to be here?” 

Sky gives him a small, sad smile. “It’s hard, but we have to transition to life on the surface. Everyone knows that, so we live down there exclusively now.” 

He turns his gaze back out to sea- to air?- and Wind leans his head against the taller hero’s side. Sky wraps an arm around his shoulders and gives him an affectionate squeeze, and they stand there in silence for a while as the island in the distance draws nearer. 

“There it is,” says Sky excitedly, lightly shaking Wind out a doze he hadn’t realized he’d fallen into. “There’s Skyloft!”

The airshop tilts alarmingly as the others crowd the bow of the shop, taking in the sight in front of them. Wind is so awed by the sheer size of the floating island that he barely registers Sky stiffening beside him, but he looks up in time to see a huge smile spreading across his face. 

“Sky?” It turns into a yelp of alarm. “Sky!”

He reaches out but it’s too late- before anyone can stop him, Sky takes a running leap of the deck of the shop. They run to the edge, yelling his name, but all that’s left is the faint sound of a piercing whistle drifting up from below. 

_ WHOOSH _

The bird is so massive that the beat of its wings rocks the airshop, and for a second Wind’s vision is completely taken up by the bright, crimson red of its feathers. Warriors catches his arm as he reels back and away from the edge, struggling to keep the it in sight.

The bird- it’s a loftwing! It must be!- corkscrews upwards in a brilliant swirl of scarlet and white, flaring its wings and diving back down towards them. 

On its back, Sky is laughing ecstatically.

\---

When they finally land on solid ground, Beedle points them in the direction of the plaza before wandering off in the opposite direction. There they find Sky and his loftwing sitting on the ground, cuddling as much as one can cuddle with a bird half the size of the Helmaroc King. He’s stroking its neck while it preens at his hair, making rumbling clucking sounds as it does so. Sky looks up at their approach, and the loftwing mantles its wings, clacking its huge beak threateningly.

“This is my loftwing,” says Sky happily and unnecessarily once he’s calmed the bird down. “Sorry about that, it’s been a few years since I last saw him, so I jumped as soon as I felt our bond come into range.” He untangles himself from the mass of feathers and pushes himself to his feet. The loftwing stands too, towering above them. Sky keeps his hand on its side and smiles at them. “Welcome to Skyloft. I would love to show you all around.”

There are loftwings  _ everywhere _ . There are clusters of them on every overgrown rooftop, and Wind feels their intense eyes on the group as they pass. Some of the birds are bathing in the lake or simply strolling along the paths, but most of them are in flight, casting shadows over their heads and encircling the giant statue of the goddess with a cocoon of rainbow feathers. 

Wild is in awe of the goddess statue, so Sky leads the others a few paces away and starts pointing out other landmarks, giving him a moment alone. Wind lags behind a little, trying to look in every direction at once. There’s so much  _ happening _ . 

“Wind, Twilight, come over here!”

Hm? Oh. He’s not the only slow one; Twilight is behind him. “Coming!” Hollers Wind, and stops to let him catch up. Twilight sighs and quickens his pace, and Wind matches it as they head towards the others. 

The older hero looks faintly distressed. “I’m probably wrong,” he mutters under his breath before Wind can ask. “I  _ think _ it’s the same place, but… it’s a coincidence. Surely.”

Wind taps his arm, and Twilight jumps. “Are you okay?”

“Don’t tell Sky,” says Twilight immediately, and refuses to elaborate.

Sky and Four are petting a purplish blue loftwing, which nudges Sky affectionately on the shoulder and takes off as Wind and Twilight approach. “Look,” says Sky, pointing. “See where she’s flying? There are some wild golden loftwings over there. They’re smaller than average and they can’t fly very long distances, but they’re one of the smartest lines. They’re not the most likely to bond with a Hylian, but we used them in games and ceremonies. It’s nice to see them living here!” 

Twilight crosses his arms and frowns with an almost angry expression, and shakes his head vigorously when Time asks what’s wrong. Oblivious, Sky keeps walking along the path, chatting happily to Warriors and Legend about the brightly painted bazaar.

Wind is even more curious now, but he’s distracted when Sky stops dead and gasps dramatically. “But wait! We’re in Skyloft, and we haven’t even found your loftwings yet!”

There’s an uncomfortable silence. “We don’t have loftwings,” says Legend finally, glancing at the others. 

Sky shrugs. “Everyone has a loftwing. That’s like saying you don’t have a soul- you haven’t met them yet, but once you do, you’ll feel it.” He reaches up and scratches his loftwing on the underside of its beak, smiling. “Usually you would meet your bird under the Goddess statue, but there are a lot of you. Let’s go get Wild, and then we’ll head back to the plaza.”

\---

“Okay, call to your loftwings!”

“...How?” Shouts Warriors, over the sound of the wind.

“It’s hard to explain! You have to whistle, but it’s a specific whistle. It’s yours and your loftwing’s. Mine is this-” Sky brings his hand to his mouth and whistles out three sort-of notes.  _ La sol do _ , thinks Wind. Sky’s loftwing is already next to him, but its tail uncurls and recurls a few times as though in response. “-And your loftwing will find you!”

Wind doesn’t really want to be the first to try, because what if he messes it up? But no one else seems to be doing anything, so he starts wracking his brain for something he can use as a loftwing whistle. What’s  _ his _ whistle?

Twilight rescues him. He bends over and plucks a piece of long, overgrown grass from a crack in the plaza’s stonework, and holds it to his lips.  _ Do sol do sol _ . 

There’s a long pause as the sound fades out, and Twilight looks around expectantly. 

“Try it again,” Sky encourages. 

Apparently the grass isn’t loud enough for Twilight’s liking, because he casts it aside and whistles again on his own.  _ Do sol do sol _ . 

_ La do sol do sol _ . 

The answering call cuts through the wind with astounding clarity, and a black loftwing alights on the platform next to them, looking at Twlight with its head cocked to one side. It’s not as impressively large as Sky’s is, but Wind sees something like awe flicker in Twilight’s eyes when he looks at it.

“Where did you get that whistle from?” Asks Legend, when Sky has walked Twilight through the next steps and he’s patting his new loftwing happily. 

“Oh, I used to use it to call to hawks. It’s a traditional Ordonian whistle.” Twilight’s bird nudges at his hand and he resumes petting it, wearing an expression that he usually reserves for puppies and other small animals. “I wondered if it might work, and I’m glad it did.”

Well, if that worked… “I have a song like that too,” says Wind, digging in his pouch for the spirit flute. “For littler birds, but maybe-” He finds the instrument, blows into it experimentally, and is rewarded with a soft, clear note.

“Me too,” says Four, pulling out an ocarina. “This ocarina has ties to a place called the Palace of Winds. I’ll bet it works here.” Legend is nodding agreement, rummaging through his own bag. 

“I know something similar,” says Time thoughtfully, but whatever he tries is covered up by Wild’s piercing horse whistle. Sky looks mildly offended, but the small brown loftwing that barrels out of the sky in response silences his protest. A tall, forest green bird with piercing blue eyes touches down next to Time, somehow wearing an almost identically exasperated expression.

Wind turns his attention back to the spirit flute. He takes a deep breath, double checks the notes in his memory, and plays the song of birds as loudly as he can.  _ Do ti do _ . He waits thirty seconds, then plays it again. 

_ Sky said whistle… Maybe an instrument won’t work? _ Looking around, he can see that Four ( _ sol la sol fi fa me)  _ and Legend ( _ sol do re sol re mi) _ , both holding ocarinas, don’t seem to be having much luck either. Whistling it is, then. Wind returns the spirit flute to its secure spot in his bag, then inhales deeply and whistles as loud as he can.  _ DO TI DO. _

He can whistle really loud.

A loftwing abducts him.

One second he’s standing on the ground, waiting expectantly while everyone looks around wildly for the source of his whistle, and the next he’s suspended in the air by his armpits. He looks up, but all he can see is a feathery white underbelly as the bird holding him securely around the shoulders lifts him away from the plaza. 

_ Aw man. Not again. _

He realizes it’s not flying away with him when it banks hard and swoops back over the plaza. His friends are all pointing and probably yelling, though he can’t hear them over the wind in his face. Warriors has his swords out, because of course he does, but the steel grey loftwing beside him looks at best mildly curious of what’s happening. Sky is clapping and looks patently delighted, and Wind tries to meet his eye and give him a thumbs up a second before the loftwing drops him flat on his face. 

It lands next to him, squawking excitedly, and a heavy, fluffy weight settles down on his back before Wind can move. 

“Ow,” he mumbles into the wood.

“Aw, that’s adorable,” says Sky’s voice above him. He hears a slight creak at his side as the other hero crouches next to him. “She’s so small! She’s probably young enough that she doesn’t remember Hylians living here, but she still knows that she’s supposed to protect you. Come on, girl,” he says encouragingly to the loftwing. “Let him up so he can meet you properly!”

The bird makes a pleasant trilling sound and the weight on his back disappears. Wind rolls over onto his back, and there’s a big shoe-shaped beak in his face, so he doesn’t try to sit up. “Hi,” he says from the ground. “My name’s Link, but that gets confusing around here, so you can call me Wind.” He reaches up and strokes her bright blue feathers tentatively, and she leans into his touch. “How do you know she’s a girl?”

“Their tails curl more than the males when they’re perched,” says Sky, helping him up. “They’re usually the bigger ones of their lines, but she’s young, so it’s harder to tell. Alright,” he says, to the group at large. “Who wants to try flying?”

“Not like that!” Calls Legend. The almost white-grey loftwing next to him glances toward Wind’s bird and flexes one taloned foot experimentally.

“No, not like that,” laughs Sky, and takes a running jump off the edge of the plaza. 

Wind’s expecting it, but there’s another bout of alarmed yells from some of the others before the crimson loftwing launches into the air and streaks after its Hylian. The pair swoops back into view a moment later, hovering a few feet above and away from the launchpad. “Who’s first?”

“ME!” Yells Wild, and all Wind sees is the blue blur of his tunic as he launches himself into the open air. 

“For Hylia’s- Don’t forget to whistle!” Yells Sky, as Wild’s brown loftwing hastily throws herself after him, plummeting out of sight. It takes longer for them to reappear, but Wild is grinning like an idiot when they come back up. His bird looks exasperated, if birds can look exasperated. 

Sky runs a hand through his hair. “You have to give your loftwing time to react. I can do that because we’ve been bonded for so long, but it was a bad example, sorry.” Wild has the sense to look sheepish, but his loftwing squawks defiantly and does an extra lap around the plaza before she lands. 

Twilight and Four volunteer next, and it goes well for them. Four’s green loftwing returns to the plaza after it catches him, but Twilight stays in the air and heads off to fly around a bit on his own, muttering something about having a “chat” with the golden loftwings, and he doesn’t clarify what he means before wheeling his bird around and darting off. He’s followed by Hyrule and Wild, who seems to have gotten paired with a loftwing as crazy as he is, because she waits even longer to catch him this time.

Legend goes next and is settled quickly, his loftwing already airborne and ready to catch him, and he hovers in the air next to Sky, yelling down at Warriors, who is taking forever to jump. Time and his loftwing seem content to sit together under the shade of a tree with Four and his, but Warriors is determined, as always, if weirdly hesitant. Wind is about ready to push him by the time he finally leaps from the platform, and then it’s  _ finally _ his turn.

His loftwing is his excitement made visible. She’s wiggling like a cat about to pounce, squawking with her wings half spread. Wind looks down at the empty sky beneath him, swallowing his nerves. He has his deku leaf, and he knows that Sky will catch him if his bird misses- that’s why he’s going last- but it’s still kind of alarming to be suddenly falling at terminal velocity.

Sky and his loftwing are plummeting down beside him as a scarlet blur, yelling something.  _ Oh! I have to whistle! _ The wind carries the sound away, hopefully to where his bird can hear it. The clouds are getting awfully close. 

He flaps his arms futily and all it does is make him rotate, and suddenly there’s a beak in his face. The blue loftwing has her wings folded in a dive, and she’s looking at him curiously. And upside down. 

“Hi!” He yells at her. “Catch me, please!” Apparently she’s just remembered that too, because she suddenly swoops under him and snaps her wings out. He hits feathers, and his momentum tumbles them down together for a terrifying moment before Sky’s loftwing swoops underneath them, supporting Wind’s until she gets her bearing and pulls away. 

When she swoops upwards his stomach drops exhilleratingly, and then she dives back down to gather speed and it feels like being aboard the King of Red Lions for the first time all over again. They’re flying! And it’s great!

Wind gives a little whoop as his loftwing crests the edge of Skyloft, and she circles a few times before mirroring Legend’s loftwing and trying to hover. 

“How do you like it?” Calls Legend, leaning easily with his loftwing like he’s been doing it his whole life. 

“It’s great!” Hollers Wind. “You?!”

“Beats walking! Wanna go find ‘Rule and Wild?” 

Sky’s loftwing glides up from below them, and now Wind can  _ really  _ appreciate how huge it is, and how in sync they are. It caught his loftwing like she weighed nothing, and there’s not a crimson feather out of place. “They went towards the waterfall,” shouts Sky. “Good job, Wind! Lean in the direction you want to go, she’ll get the hang of it!”

They fly around Skyloft for a bit- it’s a city meant to be appreciated from the air, and Sky takes them on a tour that shows the island from a completely different perspective. They find Wild, Hyrule, and their loftwings settled down on a smaller island with water cascading down from it, all four soaked to the skin and laughing. 

“Wild’s loftwing flew through the waterfall,” says Hyrule, grinning as they land. “Mine thought that was a  _ great _ idea, but I think they’re too wet to fly now.” 

The crimson loftwing looks up from grooming Wind’s and clatters its beak chidingly at Wild’s bird. She ducks her still damp head and squawks back, then flops over onto her side, bowling a laughing Wild to the ground and pinning him. 

The sun paints the clouds a thousand colors as it sinks over the horizon, and the loftwings’ feathers reflect rainbows. Wind presses against his loftwing for warmth in the cool evening air, and she coos and starts combing through his hair with the tip of her beak.

Legend sits up from where he’s leaning against his bird’s folded wing and stretches. “It’s getting late,” he says, glancing at Sky. “Are we staying here?”

“...No,” decides Sky after a moment. “Beedle will be going back to the surface as night falls, and we should go with him. Most of you don’t have a way down, otherwise.” 

Legend nods. “I’ll go find Twilight and check in with the others, then.”

“You can meet my Zelda,” says Sky wistfully, as Legend flies off. “I can’t wait to see her again.”

His voice is excited but sad, and Wind suddenly realizes that they arrived in his Hyrule and went straight to the sky. He could already be with his Zelda, but they’re here instead. “You must really miss this,” says Wind quietly, scooting over to sit next to him. 

“Mm. Yeah,” says Sky. His loftwing nudges him, and he leans his cheek against its beak, cradling its head with a soft smile. “We hid away the statues by our new town, on the surface. Everyone agreed to it, but it’s still hard. Living down there, leaving our other halves behind.”

“Most of us, though, we’ve made our peace with that, because they’ll always be with us. It’s harder knowing that the next generation will never meet their loftwings. So, that’s why I wanted you to meet yours. And that’s why I want you to meet her. Because we’re making the Hyrule that you get to live in.” 

“...And I want her to see that it’s all worth it.”  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone's interested, Wind used the song of birds from Spirit Tracks to call a cyanish female loftwing, Hyrule used the recorder song from tLoZ to call a fairy pink male, Twilight used the TP hawk call to call a black/dark grey male, Wild used his horse whistle to call a brown female, Time used the song of soaring from MM and got a dark green female with Navi colored eyes ("dark green bc aesthetic" says my notes), Legend used the flute boy's song from aLttP and got an almost white male, Four used the ocarina of wind and got a green male, and idk what Warriors did to get a light grey male but he's scared of heights so it doesn't actually matter.  
> My hc for Beedle is that his loftwing is grounded, maybe she was injured or something early in life, which is why he has the airshop in the first place. Also, they definitely took turns pedaling on the way to Skyloft, poor guy.  
> Also also, Twilight's conversation with the golden loftwings went something like this.  
> Wolf Twi: Please don't evolve into the ooccoo  
> Golden loftwings: PUNY HUMAN-


	7. Hyrule Week

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Uhhh long time no see, life sure has been happening at me.

“Don’t go over, don’t go over…”   


The deer teeters on the rocks, then collapses over the edge. There’s a meaty thud some thirty feet below their position. Hyrule winces. Legend curses under his breath and lowers his bow.   


“Twilight will kill me if we don’t go get it. I’ll hookshot down, wait here.” He fixes Hyrule with a stern look. “ _ Please _ wait here. Don’t go anywhere. I cannot emphasize this enough.”

He waits until Hyrule promises that yes, he will stay put, before sighing deeply and starting on his way down the cliff side. Hyrule watches him disappear from view, then leans back on his heels with a contented hum.

This place is nice. No one’s quite sure where they are, which probably means that they have at least one more Hero to seek out. Surely there can’t be too many more- they’re already eight, and they’ve traveled through more lands than Hyrule thought possible. He doesn’t mind, though. The air here is clean, the forests are teeming with life, and even though they haven’t seen many people, Hyrule is just happy to be somewhere peaceful.   


Even just in this little patch of woods, there’s so much to look at! Like those tiny birds, and the lizard on that tree, and that patch of funny looking green mushrooms by that stump…   


Yep, lots to keep him busy here. He’s definitely not going to wander off.   


And that’s how he finds himself lost in the caves.

He isn’t exactly sure  _ how _ he ended up underground, but a cave’s a cave’s a cave, and he’s more than happy to just wander through it until he finds the way out. Plenty of room to walk, lots to see by the light of his lantern, and just a few keese here and there- not even any Ropes! It’s easy going, and all caves end  _ somewhere _ . An exit will show up eventually.   


_ But Hyrule _ , he imagines the others saying,  _ why didn’t you just retrace your steps? _ He shakes his head fondly as he strikes down another stray keese, picturing their annoyed faces. They all have the Spirit of the Hero, but only he has the spirit of adventure!

He hears movement off to his right, and swings his lantern toward the sound just in time to catch a glint of steel in the firelight. It’s a good thing he already has his sword out, because he’s able to catch the other blade with his own before it lands.

This is no keese- Hyrule focuses himself immediately. He blocks the next swing and makes a feint towards his attacker, who reads it easily and leaps out of harms way with surprising speed. A lizalfos, maybe? He can’t tell, he’s dropped his lantern in favor of grabbing his shield. The light isn’t bright enough to show him his opponent.   


Taking a risk, he drives forward again, and is surprised when this time his sword bounces back at him with a resounding metal clang as the monster swings its shield at him, hard. Hyrule barely stumbles back in time to avoid the next slash, and it’s then when the light catches his foe’s face well enough that he can see what he’s fighting.

It’s not a monster at all! It’s a human, decked out in a fancy looking tunic and wielding a shiny, well-crafted blade. After a few more seconds of trying to hold his ground, Hyrule gets out a “Wait-!” and the stranger pauses, sword locked against Hyrule’s own, before taking one precise step back and lowering their weapon.

“Oh, thank goodness,” says Hyrule, laughing sheepishly. “I’m sorry, I thought you were a monster.”

“I didn’t expect to see anyone else in here,” says the stranger shortly, as Hyrule bends over and picks up his lantern. “What are you doing?”

Their tone is sharp with obvious suspicion. Hyrule hesitates before answering. “Well,” he says, “this might not help my case much, but I’m just sort of exploring?” He offers the other person a smile. “Not sure where the way out is, but I’ll find it eventually!”

“...Me too,” they say, guardedly.   


The stranger squints at him, and Hyrule holds the lantern a little higher so they can get a better look at one another. The person- they look and sound masculine, so Hyrule’s going with ‘he’- is a Hylian a little shorter than himself, with light skin and hair that is probably blond, or at least very light brown. It’s hard to tell in the light of the lantern. Hyrule thinks maybe his tunic is green or blue, but he isn’t sure.

Hyrule doesn’t blame him for being suspicious, but he’s a little weirded out by this guy, so he just keeps talking, trying to keep a nervous grin off of his face. “Ah, um… we could look for the exit together?”

The Hylian seems to ponder this for a moment, then says in that same guarded voice, “Yeah, alright. Just a minute.”

From seemingly nowhere a bunch of long, yellow fruit that Hyrule doesn’t recognize appears in the stranger’s hands. He pulls one of the fruits off the joint stem and bites into it very deliberately, staring at Hyrule all the while. The crunch it makes is resoundingly loud in the silence of the cave.

Hyrule just gives another nervous laugh. It’s a little higher this time. If he’s supposed to do something in response, he doesn’t know what it is.

He watches as the stranger shoves the rest of the fruit into his mouth, apparently satisfied with Hyrule’s reaction. He puts the remaining bunch away and just gestures at Hyrule to follow him, still chewing. Not really knowing what else to do, he does. He’s seen weirder, he supposes.

After a while of walking through the passages by torchlight (nothing of note happens, except that the Hylian drops one of the fruits at one point and seems reassured when Hyrule just hands it back to him, confused), the silence becomes unbearable. Hyrule doesn’t mind the quiet when he’s alone, but when he has company it just feels rude not to speak.   


“I just realized,” he says, aiming for casual friendliness, “I never got your name.”

The stranger waits a beat too long. “...Hudson.”

_ Haha okay, so that’s obviously fake. _ He doesn’t know why the man is hiding his identity, though, so he’s not about to call it out. He’s not stupid enough to give his name as Link, either. “Well, I’m a traveler, so my friends just call me Hyrule.”

“Hm,” ‘Hudson’ glances back towards him. “Okay, ‘Hyrule.’”

He turns forward again, and seems content to continue walking in silence. Desperate to keep the awkwardness from being overwhelming, Hyrule tries again. “So… you know why I’m here, but what brings you to these caves, Hudson?” He puts a tiny bit of emphasis on the fake name, giving Hudson an excuse to make up an equally as fake answer, if he wants.

Hudson actually sounds a little sheepish when he responds. “I’m uh, actually supposed to be helping with mapping these caves,” he admits. “But I got bored of waiting for Ze- I got bored of waiting for the rest of my party, and went on ahead.”

“And now we’re lost,” says Hyrule happily.

“...And now we’re lost,” says Hudson, sounding equally unconcerned, and a little more relaxed.

They trek through the cave for the better part of an hour, clearing out keese as they walk and make small talk. The chatting feels more natural the longer they walk, and Hyrule finds that he’s actually quite glad for the company. Even if he is a little weird, Hudson is easy to talk to and has lots of good stories- if anyone has the spirit of adventure, he sure does! It’s nice to talk to someone who really seems to understand the value of a little uncharted exploration.

The only real danger they come across is one lone Moblin that’s decided to set itself up a little lair in one of the cave’s chambers. Hyrule is prepared to take it down himself, but apparently Hudson is too, because he rushes in without a word and catches the thing off guard. The Moblin bellows in rage and swings a dented claymore around with terrifying strength- Hudson ducks the swipe easily and gets in two quick blows to the monster’s side before leaping back again.   


Not one to be left out of the action, Hyrule darts in when he sees an opening. He hasn’t fought a Moblin like this before, and it’s tough, but two on one brings it down quickly.

He wipes some of the blood off of his sword against his pants. “Wow, you’re pretty good, those things are nasty!”   


Hudson stands from where he’s examining the Moblin’s fallen claymore. He pockets it, brushing some of the residual monster dust off of his tunic. “Yeah,” he says. “That was some nice swordwork,” he offers in return. “I’ve never seen a sword like that.”

“It’s not from around here,” says Hyrule.

“I’d love to see it when we get outside. I know some people who are interested in artifacts like that.”

It only takes a little more wandering (“That Moblin had to get in and out from  _ somewhere _ .”) before they finally see sunlight. They emerge from a small opening at the bottom of a cliff, and Hyrule takes a deep, satisfied breath of clear air. The sun is already starting to set, sinking low over the tops of the trees. That had been a nice afternoon of caving, but he should probably be getting back to the others.

“Well, I have no idea how to get back to my group,” he says cheerfully, “but I’ll figure it out. Thanks for your company, Hudson.”

“Oh,” says Hudson. “I can help you find them. I know this area really well.”

“If it’s not too much trouble,” says Hyrule happily.  _ I _ knew _ I liked him for a reason! _ “Oh, you wanted to see my sword, right? Here,” he unsheathes it, letting the red gems on its hilt reflect the sunset dramatically. “This is the Magical Sword.” He hands it to Hudson.   


“I’ve never seen a sword like  _ this _ before,” his companion comments, swinging it experimentally a few times before handing it back to Hyrule. “Um, I have a, uh… contact, at Hyrule Castle. The researchers there are always interested in looking at unique items, if you’re willing.”

Hyrule perks up. He and the others are already on their way to this Hyrule’s Castle Town- it’s the fastest way they’ve found to seek out other Heroes- but having an excuse to visit the castle itself will save them a lot of trouble. “That would be perfect, we’re heading that way anyways,” he says. “I should really find my party, first, though.”

“Yeah of course, do you remember any landmarks?”

With Hyrule’s vague description and a quick guess at where the entrances of the cave might be, Hudson ballparks the location. They start in that direction, chatting about weapons and past ventures. Hyrule doesn’t remember what prompts him to demonstrate the Magical Sword’s sword beam ability, but he  _ is _ surprised when Hudson exclaims, “Mine does that too!” and draws his blade.

He doesn’t offer the sword to Hyrule, but he does show it off at a few different angles before sweeping it through the air and cutting a beam of light across the path. The sword itself is beautiful, untarnished steel with a purple and green hilt, the crossguard fanned out as if to imitate wings. Its sheath is detailed in shining gold and bears the triforce from the crest of the Royal family.   


“Wow,” says Hyrule, impressed. He feels something when he looks at the sword, like it’s aware of him somehow, but he doesn’t recognize it. “Does it have a name?” He asks as Hudson returns it to its place on his back. Powerful swords usually did.

“Nope,” says Hudson.

“Oh, okay.” He kind of wants to see the sword again, but feels a little silly about asking. He forgets about it when Hudson points out a bright yellow beetle and starts talking about its potion making properties.

It’s evening when they get close enough to hear people yelling Hyrule’s name. He recognizes Time’s voice nearby, and winces. They do  _ not _ sound pleased with him. “Well that’s me,” he says, turning to Hudson. “Why don’t you come with me back to camp? The least I can do to repay you for your help is give you a warm meal.” Though, depending on who’s cooking, it might not really qualify as a ‘meal.’

Maybe for the better, Hudson politely declines. “I have to be getting back, I’ve got a place to stay.” He gives Hyrule a warm handshake and promises to let his contact at Hyrule Castle know about their coming. “I’m there a lot, maybe we’ll see each other again.”

Hyrule doesn’t feel the need to ask if he’s okay traveling at night- they happily say their goodbyes and part ways.

It’s not until they reach Hyrule Castle a week later and he sees the Hero standing at Princess Zelda’s side that the penny drops.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Listen no one ever told Wild how to eat a banana. He lov the cronch)
> 
> Legend: HE GAVE YOU A FAKE NAME AND TOLD YOU HE KNEW THE ROYAL FAMILY HOW DID YOU NOT FIND THAT SUSPICIOUS?  
> Hyrule: I didn’t want to pry!  
> Legend: HE HAS THE MASTER SWORD!!  
> Hyrule: ITS NOT MY FAULT YOU LOST IT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE OCEAN BEFORE I WAS BORN-


	8. Villain Week

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I missed Four month but I have an idea for it that I'll probably just drop in this collection if I ever get around to it.  
> Anyways.  
> I went a little off the rails with this so I'm curious to see what people think. It's an extremely condensed version of something else that I'm quietly working on that I call the Bad Ending AU, which was originally just a bunch of vent whump that turned into something with a plot. The actual thing is a lot more... detailed, but its too rough a draft to work for this week. Really this is just a collection of vaguely worded snippets, idk.  
> Most of my ficlets have been fluff/crack and this one is Very Much Not but it's also not my usual style so. Yeah. Something new. Feeling a little nervous about this one, actually! Enjoy...?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNINGS FOR: Violent character death (like, so much, guys), vague descriptions of extreme violence, just know that this was originally a bad-mood-fueled whump fic of killing everyone in terrible ways so you know what to expect here. Read the summary for more info!

It's quick, at least, through the heart. All he feels is an impact on his gut, a sharp pressure between his shoulder blades, and a burning warmth in his chest cavity before everything starts feeling cold and his vision blinks out. He barely even has time to be confused. 

 _Not a lizalfos,_ he thinks hazily, as his awareness fades.

Someone is screaming his name, but he doesn’t hear them. He’s gone before he hits the ground.

\---

It’s not quick, and he makes sure of that. He tells himself three things. That he isn’t getting out of this- help is not coming. That he needs to make this last as long as he can, for their sakes. They need time, they need to get away. They _have_ to get away. He can't give himself up to death quite yet, no matter how bad it gets. No matter how tired he is. That he is not going to beg for his life, nor for mercy, nor, most importantly, for death. He will scream and curse and cry if he must but he will. Not. Beg.

When the dark sword finally drives into his ribcage, its malice crackling with frustration, he dies knowing that he's _won_.

\---

"...Something's wrong with me." His legs give out and he's down on hands and knees, and a second later the convulsions start. 

It all just happens so fast.

Someone is holding him, someone else tries to force a potion down his throat but he’s shaking too hard between fits to drink. A voice cracked with desperation yells for a fairy, and her magic gives his arms enough strength to push himself halfway into a sitting position before he loses feeling in them again and collapses, seizing again. There's a moment of almost complete silence as everyone takes that in. And… that’s when he realizes that he’s going to die.

(When a fairy doesn’t work, you’re going to die.)

His breaths get shorter and quicker, and he can’t open his mouth to scream, and he can’t breathe, and he can’t reach for his sword, and he can’t breathe, and he can’t move his body, not at all, and he can’t breathe- 

And he can’t breathe.

\---

He’s still conscious, for now, but the fistful of tunic shoved into the terrible wound is quickly soaking through with blood. He's buying himself time, but it's only a matter of minutes, _seconds_ , before the blood loss overcomes him and he passes out. With nothing else to stem the bleeding, with the others unable to reach him… it’s a game, and it’s played in minutes and seconds.

He closes his eyes and whispers something to her. An apology, maybe, for his failures. To them, as well, perhaps. It doesn’t matter. The others will never found out what he said. 

He feels his fingers slip as his blade finds its target, feels his awareness fall away, feels the blood spraying from his near-severed arm like water from a spigot. Distantly, distantly. 

He hears a scream of fury, a scream of anguish, and then nothing.

\---

“It doesn’t hurt,” he says, because it feels very important, suddenly, that Sky knows.

It doesn’t hurt. Nothing past his waist, at least, and he’s grateful. He doesn’t think he wants to be able to feel past that.

“It doesn’t hurt,” he repeats, trying to smile. He grips the hand tighter. It doesn’t, really. Well, maybe a little.

“I’m… I’m going to sleep now, okay?” It… it hurts.

“...Stay with me?” It hurts a lot.

“Promise?”

He closes his eyes, and he doesn’t hurt anymore.

\---

There is no preamble, no more game to be played when it finds them. He goes down in a perfectly normal, horrible, violent spray of blood, just like he always hoped he wouldn’t.

\---

He feels at once too light and too heavy without her steady presence, but it hardly matters what sword he is holding when he charges forward. If he can get to his friend’s side, if he can be fast enough- the blood is still flowing, maybe he can still be saved-

The sphere of darkness that smashes into his chest electrifies every inch of his body, its searing malice lancing through him and pumping through his veins and it hurts it hurts it hurts it-

\---

“ _Twilight!”_ He hears, and turns at the sound of his name, one hand clutching at the gash in his abdomen. He turns, and as his shadow rises up behind him, Time’s terrified, anguished face is the last thing he sees.

\---

**“You know what we want. There is only one way.”**

“...Yes.”

He is broken.

He closes his eyes, lifts his hand to his face. When they reopen, he smiles a smile that is not his own, and the shadow laughs and laughs as it burns.

\---

\--

-

\--

\---

A youth collapses in the forest, sobbing, his body finally giving in to exhaustion and grief. He closes his eyes and sees the flames. They consume the barn, the fields, the beehives, the village, his aunt and uncle, his friends, his _everything_ -

He wants nothing more than to curl up and die in his turn, but a voice tells him not to. He stops crying to listen. It’s not a speaking voice, but it’s there. It’s calling to him. It needs him.

He follows the voice. It belongs to a sword.

 _Help them_ , it whispers in one voice speaking for many. _Help them_.

He doesn’t know who _they_ are, but it sounds like this sword loved them very much.

What if… what if with this, he could put an end to its reign? Strike it down, and rid the world of the terrible scourge?

Rid it of the Deity.

_Free their spirits._

Link reaches forward and draws the sword.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Might end up talking about the ending more in the Discord if anyone's interested. I know angsty murder fic is abundant in this fandom but I swear there's more to it than that lol
> 
> ...Anyone feel like playing a very morbid matching game? It's pretty obvious who some of the deaths belong to but I bet ya'll can guess them all.


End file.
